With Tracy, what I find striking is not his personal proclivities and tactical decisions. Those are almost extraordinarily ordinary. There are certain things he does more or less than an average skipper, but nothing especially notable. The most interesting thing about Tracy is his career arc.

One of the few infuriating aspects of Jackie Robinson Day is the blowback from the uninformed. I have read today of how integration in this country was inevitable, and Robinson’s success in 1947 was just a happy coincidence. I have read that the talent of the Negro Leagues was just too great and had Robinson failed, had he hit .197 instead of .297, it was still inevitable that those great athletes would have forced their way into the mainstream of American sports.

Utter nonsense.

My absence this past weekend from blogging is due solely to the recent playoff hopes of the LA Kings. I was at the game at Staples last night, and I have to note that I have never heard it so loud. When the Kings went up 1-0 in the third period the noise was deafening. If you don't already know, the Kings are 3-0 in the 7 game series against the Vancouver Canucks. For the first time in their history they lead a series by that margin. Hopefully, this coming Wednesday they can close it out with a series ending victory. Below are game highlights from last night